Keeping Kegs On Standby

[Kingy]

my fridge holds 2 kegs alltho it would hold 4 if i took the top shelf out and removed the door shelves but i like to have longys and glasses in my fridge as well.

so the question is.
i only have 2 kegs and was thinking of getting 2 more as a backups and store near the fridge so when a keg runs out i can just rotate 1 in right away.

if i was to get a few more kegs can i just fill as usual and burb the kegs as usual and just leave outside the fridge for a few weeks untill one is emptied
Also how long is the most amount of time i could store the beer in kegs for?(outside fridge at ambient temp)

im thinking this would maybe condition them as well but i dont have a clue on how long theyd sit for before being no good.
alltho they wouldnt sit there for anymore than a month at my house....

cheers kingy

 

[oldbugman]

yes

 

[jmc]

You'll have to carbonate the keg. If you just burp it the uncarbonated beer will absorb the Co2 you're relying on to seal the keg and you won't have a sealed keg any more.
John

 

[TidalPete]

Perhaps very slightly off-topic?

I have just carbonated my first keg & am wondering along similar lines.
Instead of bottling the rest of my (24 litre) batch after kegging, can anyone describe the prodedures for adding the surplus to another keg to keep for a week or two (In the fridge) until the surplus from the next brew is ready to add to the keg thus creating a kegged beer shandy so to speak?

I'm told you can get some interesting(?) brews this way? :unsure:

Sorry jmc, didn't see your post.
:beer:

 

[Zwickel]

....so the question is.
i only have 2 kegs and was thinking of getting 2 more as a backups and store near the fridge so when a keg runs out i can just rotate 1 in right away.

basically that will work, but.....

if i was to get a few more kegs can i just fill as usual and burb the kegs as usual and just leave outside the fridge for a few weeks untill one is emptied

...it depends how long youre going to leave it outside the fridge and wether the beer is filtered or not.
IMHO if the beer is unfiltered, after a certain time (depends on the temp) the yeast will produce an autolysis.
That provides a muddy taste in the beer.
But....if you have only 4 Kegs, two of them in the fridge and two of them outside and you are a passable beerdrinker, the beer will not reach the age to produce autolysis. Id say for around 4 weeks, there will not be any problem.

Also how long is the most amount of time i could store the beer in kegs for?(outside fridge at ambient temp)

as I mentioned above, Id say for around 4 weeks would be okay. It does not mean, after 4 weeks the beer will not be drinkable anymore, but little by little the yeast will run into autolysis and the taste will suffer.

I think, to solve that problem, always to have a pleasant beer on tap, there is only one way:

two more kegs in the serving fridge in our kitchen.

The only thing to fear, is running out of beer

 

[razz]

basically that will work, but.....

...it depends how long youre going to leave it outside the fridge and wether the beer is filtered or not.
IMHO if the beer is unfiltered, after a certain time (depends on the temp) the yeast will produce an autolysis.
That provides a muddy taste in the beer.
But....if you have only 4 Kegs, two of them in the fridge and two of them outside and you are a passable beerdrinker, the beer will not reach the age to produce autolysis. Id say for around 4 weeks, there will not be any problem.
as I mentioned above, Id say for around 4 weeks would be okay. It does not mean, after 4 weeks the beer will not be drinkable anymore, but little by little the yeast will run into autolysis and the taste will suffer.

I think, to solve that problem, always to have a pleasant beer on tap, there is only one way:

two more kegs in the serving fridge in our kitchen.

The only thing to fear, is running out of beer

Love the keg freezer Zwickel, show off ! :super:

 

[Kingy]

cheers thx guys looks like im gunna have to lose the longneck shelf and maybe the door shelves so i can fit 4 kegs in.

ok another question this might sound a bit bodge

i dont have a dual regulator but i run 2 taps of the single reg using a john guest splitter to split the gas line into 2 to carb up both kegs. is it ok to add another splitter off 1 of the gas lines to carb another keg up.

so im carbing 3 kegs at once

 

[razz]

Yes you can Kingy. I can see a bigger fridge/freezer buy coming up for you old chap !

 

[tangent]

i wouldn't leave a keg out in ambient temps in certain parts of Australia. Canberra and country Victoria and Tassie, yes. Storing excess in a cold keg (only 5kpa or less head pressure to keep the lid shut) and then transferring it via a filter later, keg to keg works really well for me.

 

[frogman]

Perhaps very slightly off-topic?

I have just carbonated my first keg & am wondering along similar lines.
Instead of bottling the rest of my (24 litre) batch after kegging, can anyone describe the prodedures for adding the surplus to another keg to keep for a week or two (In the fridge) until the surplus from the next brew is ready to add to the keg thus creating a kegged beer shandy so to speak?

I'm told you can get some interesting(?) brews this way? :unsure:

Sorry jmc, didn't see your post.
:beer:

Go for it.
Have a keg labeled "BLEND" Its all the left over bits from the last six months of brewing.
It is one of my nicest beers. "Lightly carbed" full of hops and a real suprise every time I add a bit to it.

FROGMAN

 

[Zwickel]

so im carbing 3 kegs at once

thats fine, there is no limit on the number of beer kegs, you may create a battery of a endless number of kegs.

 

[TidalPete]

Perhaps very slightly off-topic?
I have just carbonated my first keg & am wondering along similar lines.
Instead of bottling the rest of my (24 litre) batch after kegging, can anyone describe the prodedures for adding the surplus to another keg to keep for a week or two (In the fridge) until the surplus from the next brew is ready to add to the keg thus creating a kegged beer shandy so to speak?

Go for it.
Have a keg labeled "BLEND" Its all the left over bits from the last six months of brewing.
It is one of my nicest beers. "Lightly carbed" full of hops and a real suprise every time I add a bit to it.

Thanks for your imput Frogman but I am still uncertain about how to gas the "blend" keg?
Do I fully carbonate the partly filled keg or do I just add enough CO2 to stop oxidisation in the keg until I finally fill it?
Need an answer ASAP, kegging day on Wednesday.

:beer:

 

[frogman]

Thanks for your imput Frogman but I am still uncertain about how to gas the "blend" keg?
Do I fully carbonate the partly filled keg or do I just add enough CO2 to stop oxidisation in the keg until I finally fill it?
Need an answer ASAP, kegging day on Wednesday.

:beer:

I just treat it the same as a full keg.
Just let off the excess pressure add some more beer, cap,pressurise and bleed a few times and leave on the gas. Bit flat if you drink it straight away but still very tasty.
Mine contains all different sorts and styles of beers. From APA's to smoked dark ales.

FROGMAN

 

[Kingy]

is it ok to leave a keg hooked up to the gas (outside the fridge) untill therez room to move it in the fridge.

i dont see anything wrong with this.

 

[FNQ Bunyip]

Ha, I recently had a blend on tap and after the second day the missus says you HAVE to brew this again its a top beer.

The look of total disapointment on her face when I told her it origin was very unseterling..

:beer:

 

[oldbugman]

I just purge the headspace and pressurise it with ~100kpa(my pouring pressure) and store it. used to store it next to the taps now they get stored down stairs in the laundry which is a bit more constant 20-22 in summer and down to 16 in winter.

When ever it comes time to use the kegs I always, for curiosity sakes, pull the bleeder and there is always a positive pressure in there.